Focusing on a solid game

Just some thoughts from the last few sessions:



Thin value really has gotten out of control. I did it again yesterday heads up at 5 10 versus the regular i beat at 2k. I flatted A3 sutied out of position and check raised A75, planning to check call the turn and check fold the river. I don't need to balance for value to this thin of a degree. Anyway i turned two pair and fired for value planning to stack off. The board ran out A5734 with a flush draw on the flop missing. I used my entire time bank and decided to shove $600 into $800. He called with A4, my cutoff for value shoving should be A5 here. And its not just because he showed up with A4 that I say this, but A5 is just above the median two pairs that he can call me with. I expect to start showing profit at A5+.This was the guy who called me ultra light at 2k heads up. On this board I told myself I could get called by worse two pairs or maybe top pair. Part of being a great poker player is being brutally honest with yourself. This game is so complex and intricate that at times it feels like your head is gonna explode. So I said to myself, "why not make it easier to play?" My flop check raise really is not all that bad and its suites my style well but it makes for some very dicey spots on later streets. I am hemorrhaging money going for thin value too often. No doubt it does make me a pain in the ass to play, but at what expense? Someone who is tough to play might not also be the biggest winner. By doing something as simple as buckling down and shaving ultra thin value plays off my game, I make the later streets easier to play with marginal holdings and the pot is smaller. Its pretty simple logic- weak hand, keep the pot small, strong hand, start building the pot, and hands that aren't yet made but have a lot of equity(draws), use these to semi bluff with. I am really just getting carried away with merging my ranges at the 1 and 2k games. My opponents don't think deeply enough for me to be able to use plays like this.



My last thought is about playing within the momentum and flow of the game. I've started limping more lately to keep pots smaller pre-flop. Today I realized, perhaps I shouldn't limp when an up-tempo match favors me more than my opponent. Some guys just play much worse versus me when I am raising a lot and bloating pots in position. Some guys play worse when I limp. It is my job to identify these player types and employ the best strategy. Both of these paragraphs can be summed up in one phrase, "Adjust according to your opponent."